Cuba's President Miguel Díaz-Canel to Sky News:

There are no Chinese bases in Cuba. We've said that several times.

These are constructs based on manipulation and lies. Can they show where the bases are?

In our history, when has Cuba made any aggressive action against the United States?

The nature of Cubans is friendliness, cooperation. We are not a problem.

What has been Cuba's sin? Just trying to build socialism only 90 miles from the United States.

Cuba's President Miguel Díaz-Canel to Sky News:

We've been under the blockade for 60 years. It is the longest-running blockade in the history of mankind.

And it's not just any blockade — it is an economic, financial, commercial blockade, and now an energy blockade.

And this blockade is not being imposed by any country. It is being imposed by the mightiest power in the world.

Don't blockade me. Why are you blocking me?

Let me fail on my own and see whether I succeed. And I'm sure that we will succeed.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan:

Both President Erdogan and President Trump have a strong commitment to lifting the CAATSA sanctions.

Last September, the two leaders publicly expressed their positions on this issue, and we, as ministers, were instructed to resolve the matter.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan:

I believe the lifting of the ban on F-35 sales to Türkiye will come after the CAATSA sanctions are lifted.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan:

Israel is, by the international community's virtually unanimous assessment, a destabilizing force. Unfortunately, it is a country governed by a reckless clique that has brought instability, oppression, bloodshed, and massacres wherever it has acted.

That is the consensus shared by virtually everyone.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan:

American politicians support Israel as long as doing so serves their own interests.

This dynamic has persisted for so long that the alignment between supporting Israel and advancing U.S. interests has come to be treated as a permanent assumption.

However, for the first time since the genocide in Gaza, the analyses that have emerged point to a different conclusion: "the existing system is working against our interests."

No one wants the continuation of a system that ultimately works against their own interests.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan:

There has been a dramatic surge in anti-Israel sentiment around the world, from university campuses to newspapers.

Why? Because people see Israel openly carrying out massacres and openly playing a destabilizing role wherever it acts.

In the past, they could obscure it with a few simple media maneuvers. Now, they can no longer hide it.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan:

Israel is currently searching for a new enemy.

As long as Israel—or any other actor—acts in ways that conflict with our national and regional interests, we have no reason to fear anyone, hesitate, or back down.

We have no problem with confrontation. If it comes to that, it is not an issue for us.

Israel is not just my problem; it is the world's problem.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan:

Israel is not just Türkiye's problem, nor is it solely President Erdogan's issue. The only difference is that President Erdogan is the one openly saying that what is wrong is wrong. That is a separate matter, and it is something humanity itself should reflect on.

But everyone knows it and feels it. People whisper it behind closed doors, and from time to time they say it openly. This is a problem for all of humanity. That's what we should call it.

These people have become a burden that humanity can no longer bear. With these policies and this mindset, humanity cannot carry this burden. The human conscience cannot bear it. Political systems cannot sustain it, and economic systems cannot sustain it. No matter which framework you use, there is no parameter under which these people can be sustained.

That is why we always say to the international community, when they ask me, "Why are you making this your issue?" I may be the only country that can speak out loudly against it, but this is a problem for all of you.

If you expect me to solve your problem on your behalf all by myself, then everyone must step up, take a diplomatic stance, and impose the necessary sanctions on those people.

German poll: Merz hits record low — AfD leads as strongest party at 27%.

Chancellor Friedrich Merz's approval has dropped to a new record low of just 13% in the latest Deutschlandtrend poll for ARD and WELT, down three points from last month.

84% of Germans say they are dissatisfied with his performance.

His CDU/CSU has fallen to 22% — its lowest since November 2021 — while coalition partner SPD dropped to 12%.

The AfD leads as the strongest party at 27%, unchanged from last month. The Greens rose one point to 15%, the Left one point to 11%.

The economy dominates public concern: 78% say they worry about Germany as an industrial location.

Climate change ranks second at 66%, followed by immigration at just over 50%.

Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) remains the only politician with majority approval at 52%.

AfD leader Alice Weidel, at 27% approval, scores more than double the chancellor.

X suspends Trump portfolio tracker account within 24 hours of launch — after it gained 80K+ followers tracking his public financial disclosures.

The account launched immediately after the release of Trump's 927-page 2025 annual financial disclosure, which revealed over $1 billion in crypto-related income alone — including ~$515 million from World Liberty Financial token sales, $635 million in memecoin licensing royalties, and tens of millions in crypto wallet holdings.

Total reported 2025 income was estimated at around $2.2 billion.

No case-specific explanation was issued.

Similar long-running automated accounts tracking other politicians' trades (such as Nancy Pelosi trackers using the same type of public disclosure data) remain active.

WATCH: Aerial footage shows massive fuel queues in Russia as Ukrainian refinery strikes bite.

Long convoy of cars and trucks snake along a highway around a fuel station in rural Russia.

U.S. officials feared Israel might assassinate Iran’s top negotiators—Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf—during sensitive peace talks this spring.

Concerned such a strike would derail negotiations and reignite the war, Washington asked regional countries to warn Iran of the risk.

Iran took extensive security measures to protect its delegation, including military escorts and changes to travel plans after receiving intelligence about a possible Israeli attack.

Source: NYT

Poland will not send its remaining MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine after a planned swap for Ukrainian drone technology fell through.

Instead, Poland will gradually retire the aging MiG-29s as they reach the end of their service life, with no plans to upgrade them.

The retirement schedule will remain classified.

Russian missile strikes residential high-rise in Kyiv.

Body of Iranian leader Khamenei arrives at farewell ceremony near Imam Khomeini’s Hussainiyah.

Germany's Chancellor Merz explains himself:

We are returning to the rule that existed in Germany before COVID. Back then, nobody complained about it.

The electronic and telephone sick note was introduced to reduce the risk of infection—not to make obtaining a sick note easier.

We have seen that, since then, the number of sick leave certificates has increased significantly.

Trump on his crypto earnings:

We have to be at the top, otherwise China's going to take it over.

If we're not going to do it, China's going to get it — most likely China, but somebody else.

Japan is somebody else. And I want to be number one.

A senior official from Polish President Nawrocki’s office sparked backlash after referring to Volhynia and “Eastern Lesser Poland”—a historical Polish term for parts of western Ukraine (used by Poland in 1922–1939).

The remarks came while condemning Ukraine’s “glorification of Bandera” and UPA.